The Chinese crew now find themselves in police custody

Apr 16, 2013 14:47 GMT  ·  By
22,000 pounds of pangolin meat found aboard boat that crashed into a coral reef
   22,000 pounds of pangolin meat found aboard boat that crashed into a coral reef

The crew on a Chinese boat must now figure out a way to explain how it was that they ended up crashing into a coral reef that was part and parcel of the Tubbataha National Marine Park.

More so given the fact that, following a more careful investigation of their boat, it was discovered that these alleged fishermen were not really transporting seafood and fish.

Quite the contrary: they were trying to smuggle a whopping 22,000 pounds (9,979 kg) of pangolin meat, which was carefully tucked away in 400 boxes. Mongabay informs us that, although the Filipino coastguard first became aware of this boat's smashing into the protected coral reef about a week ago, the boxes containing the pangolin meat were only discovered this past Saturday.

In case anyone was wondering, the news that the crew aboard this Chinese boat were in fact trying to smuggle pangolin meat caused a stir amongst conservationists due to the fact that said animal, which is native to Asia and Africa, is currently threatened with becoming extinct.

According to the same source, several species of pangolin are now listed as endangered, whereas others are believed to be nearly threatened.

This decline in their population is largely due to the illegal wildlife trade. Much like elephants and rhinos, pangolins are killed and consumed by people because it is believed that their scales have medicinal properties.

Furthermore, their meat is thought to be a rare delicacy in several parts of the world, conservationists explain.

Although the media rarely reports of trafficking activities involving pangolin meat, it is believed that these animals are currently some of the most illegally traded.

As a result of their smashing the vessel into the Tubbataha National Marine Park's coral reef and their illegally transporting pangolin meat, the crew aboard this Chinese boat were all taken into police custody.

They now run the risk of being made to spend up to ten years in prison and pay fines of $300,000 (€229,361).